What does it mean to be an ally?: The perception of allies from the perspective of people of color

Allies are frequently studied from the viewpoint of dominant group members. Three studies took a different perspective by investigating how people of color perceive both White allies and allies of color. Study 1 used content analysis of qualitative data from 80 people of color to describe eight major themes of ally perception. With samples of 182 and 195 people of color, Studies 2 and 3 employed exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis to identify two subscales, informed action and affirmation, based on the themes. Both independent and paired samples t tests showed that people of color rating a White ally versus an ally of color perceived significantly less willingness to engage racial issues. Findings are discussed in relation to existing allies research.     

Racial and Religious Convergences and Divergences among Christian Students’ Approaches to Color-Blindness,Color-Cognizance,and Race in Christian Organizations

Drawing on survey data of Christian students (N = 4261) enrolled at 11 colleges that are part of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities, we examine color-blindness, different types of color-cognizance, and views on race in Christian organizations. We find significant differences between students of color and White students in color-blindness and color-cognizance but find racial convergence in the importance of racial reconciliation. Net of controls, greater evangelical orthodoxy is associated with color-cognizant views that perceive prejudicial treatment against White people, undercut the experiences of people of color, and is associated with more positive views of Christian organizations’ roles in race relationships. Concurrently, upper year students differ significantly from first years in their racial attitudes and views on race in Christian organizations, suggesting that Christian education may shape racial views positively. Our findings have implications for theorizing how evangelical Christianity and evangelical colleges maintain and challenge color-blindness and White supremacy.     

Witnessing racial discrimination shapes collective action for racial justice: Enhancing awareness of privilege among advantaged groups

Three studies tested whether witnessing incidents of racial discrimination targeting Black people may motivate White people to engage in collective action for racial justice. In studies of White Americans (Study 1) and self-identified White activist “allies” (Study 2), witnessing incidents of racial discrimination predicted greater willingness to participate in collective action for racial justice, through the pathway of enhanced awareness of racial privilege. Studies 1 and 2 showed that awareness of racial privilege uniquely predicted the link between witnessing incidents of racial discrimination and willingness to participate in collective action for racial justice; these effects were consistent both with and without controlling for Whites’ sense of identification with their own racial group. Study 3 tested experimentally how witnessing incidents of racial discrimination may compel White people to become more motivated to engage in collective action for racial justice. Compared to those in a control condition, White participants who were randomly assigned to watch a brief video depicting recent discriminatory incidents targeting Black people (e.g., Starbucks incident in Philadelphia, housing incident at Yale University) tended to show greater motivation to engage in collective action for racial justice, an effect accounted for largely by enhanced awareness of racial privilege. How witnessing incidents of racial discrimination can transform views of privilege and willingness to stand up for racial justice among members of advantaged racial groups is discussed.     

What should allies do? Identifying activist perspectives on the role of white allies in the struggle for racial justice in the United States

The present research examined the perspectives of both White and Black racial justice activists on the roles of White allies in the struggle for justice for Black people in the United States. Study 1 used Q methodology, a mixed-methods approach, which identified four distinct perspectives about the role of White allies from a sample of activists (33 White and 22 Black Americans): (1) mobilize to support Black leadership, (2) interpersonal activism, (3) avoid dominating Black people's efforts, and (4) lifelong learning. In Study 2, we interviewed activists (22 White and 12 Black Americans) to understand their evaluation of, and preference for, each of perspective identified in Study 1. Thematic analyses showed that each perspective had its pros and cons regarding considerations of how to best use ingroup advantages without dominating the movement. Our findings contribute to our understanding of potential tensions in solidarity-based social movements.     

Historical Inquiry to Challenge the Narrative of Racial Progress

This article explores how a curricular intervention that merges antiessentialist historical content and historical inquiry plays a role in how students complicate the narrative of racial progress. The 3-day curricular intervention centers on Mendez v. Westminster, a case about 1940s Mexican American school segregation. The content and historical inquiry activities explore how (a) Mexican Americans claimed legal Whiteness to gain access to better schools and (b) how Mendez upheld race and language-based segregation. This article outlines how students engage in 4 levels of historical analysis: evidenceless claims, emerging complexity, relational analysis, and multidimensionality. In each type of analysis, students use the antiessentialist historical content to complicate the narrative of racial progress. They highlight, to different degrees, how racial discriminatory policies adapt to continue upholding discrimination. With the antiessentialist historical content in place, the narrative of racial progress functioned as a template, not to emulate but, rather, as a point of comparison. It encouraged students to engage in a complex analysis where they considered how Mendez was an incomplete victory. This research provides insight into levels of analysis that up to now have mostly been theoretical. The larger lesson here, as it applies to how educators teach history, is that (a) the experiences of people of color cannot be essentialized, (b) inquiry can be a useful tool in encouraging historical reasoning that considers such racial/ethnic nuance, and (c) collective memory might be leveraged to encourage students to develop such relational analysis.     

African American and White Women’s Experience of Sexual Assault and Services for Sexual Assault

This article presents the results of a study assessing the needs and experiences of African American and White female survivors of sexual assault in the state of Maryland. Eight specific hypotheses regarding differences in the needs and experiences of African American as compared to White women receiving partial or no support through analyses of interview data drawn from 213 survivors (African American survivors, n = 133; White survivors, n = 80) were explored. No differences were reported in medical care received; however, in comparison to their White counterparts, African American women reported decreased use of sexual assault crisis centers and mental health services, and postassault help-seeking through use of sexual assault hotlines. Barriers and facilitators associated with treatment experiences differed by ethnicity. Findings are discussed in relation to future directions for research, and service and policy improvement for survivors of sexual assault.     

“I am because we are:” collectivism as a foundational characteristic of African American college student identity and academic achievement

This study extends current research on African American college student achievement by focusing on collectivism, a key characteristic of African American racial identity. Collectivism serves as the framework for analysis of students’ beliefs about the purpose of higher education, conceptualization of their roles and responsibilities as students, and the ways that students measure academic success within the context of a predominantly White university. Given that a conflict between students’ background and the culture of the university environment can exist, the findings offer educators insight into the unique experiences and achievement aspirations of African American college students and strategies to effectively mentor and support them.     

Examining a community intervention to help White people understand race and racism and engage in anti-racist behaviours

Uprisings over the past decade have accelerated the search for interventions to support White people in increasing their capacity to understand historical and present-day racial dynamics. This study investigates the impacts and effectiveness of a community-led intervention developed to prime White individuals to challenge injustice through increasing knowledge, confidence, and competence related to race, racism, intragroup dialogue, and colour-blind racial attitudes. Five hundred and thirty seven participants were recruited from four cohorts of community-led groups, which read, reflected, journaled, and completed activities related to race and racism for a total of 40 hr over 10 sessions. Participants were given pre- and post-measures to assess their White racial capacity, and colour-blind racial attitudes. Participants also completed a follow-up assessment on anti-racist behaviours. The results indicated that participants were able to increase their racial capacity in terms of their understanding and knowledge of race and racism. They also indicated that they felt more confident and competent to have racial discussions in an intergroup context. The possibilities and limitations of interventions to shift attitudes and behaviours are discussed.     

Negotiating Racial Identity

Abstract

Counseling research on racial identity development among multiracial people has largely overlooked the complexity of these individuals' social experiences and how their multiple realities result in various racial identities. The assumptions that individuals with one Black and one White parent can only understand themselves as “Black” or “biracial” have been socially, culturally and politically constructed, providing a misguided foundation for models of racial identity. Here, we present findings from a study of 177 biracial individuals that illustrate the multidimensionality of racial identity among this population. We focus on the mechanism of interactional validation in identity construction to better understand the particular dilemmas faced by biracial women and formulate appropriate therapeutic approaches.     

The Effects of Contact with Asians and Asian Americans on White American College Students: Attitudes, Awareness of Racial Discrimination, and Psychological Adjustment

On the basis of acculturation theory, explicating mutual influences between different cultural or ethnic groups coming into contact, this study focused "on the other side of acculturation" theory by examining the effects of intercultural contact with Asians and Asian Americans on the psychosocial experiences of White American college students. Participants (N = 315), undergraduates attending a public university located within the state of Massachusetts, completed a survey that assessed demographic and personal characteristics, acculturation (extent of intercultural contact with Asian people and Asian cultures), attitudes towards Asians and Asian Americans, awareness of institutional discrimination and blatant racial issues, and psychological distress. Results indicated that White American students' intercultural contact with Asians and Asian Americans contributed significant variance to the prediction of their attitudes towards this ethnic group and awareness of discrimination and racial issues, but not to psychological distress. This study provides implications for understanding mutual acculturative influences between different ethnic groups in the United States.     

Student Perceptions of Campus Cultural Climate by Race

Five hundred and seventy-eight African American, Asian American, Latino/a, and White undergraduates responded to a questionnaire assessing perceptions and experiences of the campus cultural climate. Results revealed significant differences between racial and ethnic groups on multiple dimensions of the campus cultural climate. African American students consistently reported significantly more racial—ethnic conflict on campus; pressure to conform to stereotypes; and less equitable treatment by faculty, staff, and teaching assistants. White students' responses reflected limited perceptions of racial—ethnic tensions and a university climate characterized by respect for diversity. Counseling implications are presented.     

Racial microaggressions in everyday life: implications for clinical practice

Racial microaggressions are brief and commonplace daily verbal, behavioral, or environmental indignities, whether intentional or unintentional, that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative racial slights and insults toward people of color. Perpetrators of microaggressions are often unaware that they engage in such communications when they interact with racial/ethnic minorities. A taxonomy of racial microaggressions in everyday life was created through a review of the social psychological literature on aversive racism, from formulations regarding the manifestation and impact of everyday racism, and from reading numerous personal narratives of counselors (both White and those of color) on their racial/cultural awakening. Microaggressions seem to appear in three forms: microassault, microinsult, and microinvalidation. Almost all interracial encounters are prone to microaggressions; this article uses the White counselor--client of color counseling dyad to illustrate how they impair the development of a therapeutic alliance. Suggestions regarding education and training and research in the helping professions are discussed.     

Real-life outgroup exposure,self-reported outgroup contact and the other-race effect

People are better at recognizing faces from their own racial or ethnic group compared with faces from other racial or ethnic groups, known as the other-‘race’ effect (ORE). Several theories of the ORE assume that memory for other-race faces is impaired because people have less contact with members of other racial or ethnic groups, resulting in lower visual expertise. The present research investigates contact theories of the ORE, using self-report contact measures and objective measures of potential outgroup exposure (estimated from participants' residential location and from GPS tracking). Across six studies (total N = 2660), we observed that White American and White German participants displayed better memory for White faces compared with Black or Middle Eastern faces, whereas Black American participants displayed similarly equal or better memory for White compared with Black faces. We did not observe any relations between the ORE and objective measures of potential outgroup exposure. Only in Studies 2a and 2b, we observed very small correlations (rs = −.08 to .06) between 4 out of 30 contact measures and the ORE. We discuss methodological limitations and implications for theories of the ORE.     

Racial dialogues: challenges faculty of color face in the classroom

Research on the experiences of faculty of color in predominantly White institutions (PWIs) suggests that they often experience the campus climate as invalidating, alienating, and hostile. Few studies, however, have actually focused on the classroom experiences of faculty of color when difficult racial dialogues occur. Using Consensually Qualitative Research, eight faculty of color were interviewed about their experiences in the classroom when racially tinged topics arose. Three major findings emerged. First, difficult racial dialogues were frequently instigated by the presence of racial microaggressions delivered toward students of color or the professor. Dialogues on race were made more difficult when the classrooms were diverse, when heated emotions arose, when there was a strong fear of self-disclosure, and when racial perspectives differed. Second, all faculty experienced an internal struggle between balancing their own values and beliefs with an attempt to remain objective. This conflict was often described as exhausting and energy-depleting. Third, faculty of color described both successful and unsuccessful strategies in facilitating difficult dialogues on race that arose in the course of their teaching. These findings have major implications for how PWIs can develop new programs, policies, and practices that will aid and support colleagues of color.     

Asians on the edge: the reciprocity of allied behavior

The discussion of racial and ethnic minority issues has traditionally been a Black-White discussion. As such, American Indians, Latinos, and Asians have been left out of this discussion. Such exclusion does not make scientific sense, as it makes conclusions about race relations less generalizable. It also comes with a cost, as the excluded groups are often asked to give up their respective ethnicities to join the discussion. The present article, discusses some of these scientific and social losses and suggests that prominent African American and White leaders serve as allies for the inclusion of all groups in the discussion of race relations, focusing particularly on the Asian experience. Such allies must come not only from academicians but also from community activists and those in power positions in the media.     

The Impact of Feminist Attitudes on the Relation between Racial Awareness and Racial Identity

This study examined the role of liberal and inclusive feminist attitudes in the development of a positive racial identity in a sample of White female undergraduates in the Midwestern United States. Participants (N?=?90) provided self-report data on their racial awareness, liberal and inclusive feminist attitudes, racial identity and demographic information. The main research question was how and to what extent liberal and inclusive feminism influence the relationship between racial awareness and racial identity. Building on conceptual scholarship on identity theory and the intersectionality, results indicated that the relation between racial awareness and racial identity was partially mediated by inclusive feminist attitudes but not by liberal feminist attitudes. The results suggest that a specific type of feminism, which takes into account the experience of race, plays a significant role in our understanding of how White women develop a positive White identity. Results highlight the intersection of race and gender in college student development and have potential implications for administrative responses to student adjustment in increasingly diverse college environments.     

A qualitative exploration of school racial diversity,friendship choices,and Black women's identity-based experiences in high school

Social integration is a critical component of adolescents' positive school adjustment. Although prior scholars have highlighted how Black women and girls' social identities (e.g., race, gender, social class) influence their academic and social experiences in school, very little work has focused on how school racial diversity shapes Black girls' peer networks throughout K–12 education. To address this gap in the literature, the present qualitative study explored the narratives of 44 Black undergraduate women (M_age = 20 years) who reflected on their friendship choices in high school. We used consensual qualitative research methods to examine how Black women navigated friendships during their time attending predominantly White (less than 20% Black), racially diverse (21%–60% Black), and predominantly Black (61%–100% Black) high schools. Coding analyses revealed five friendship themes: (a) Black female friends, (b) mostly Black friends, (c) mostly interracial friends, (d) mostly White friends, and (e) White friends in academic settings and Black friends in social settings. Our findings highlight how the young women's ongoing negotiation of racialized and gendered school norms influenced their sense of closeness with same-race and interracial peers. Black girls may have challenges with forming lasting and meaningful friendships when they cannot find peers who are affirming and supportive, particularly in predominantly White school contexts. This study underscores the need to look at how racial diversity in the student population offers school psychologists and educators insight into how to better support the social and emotional development of Black girls.     

Evaluations of presidential performance: Race, prejudice, and perceptions of Americanism

Earlier research suggests that despite President Obama's election, racial prejudice persists and continues to shape reactions to his presidency. The current work examines the role of Whites’ prejudice in shaping perceptions of Obama's Americanism, and ultimately evaluations of his performance. Specifically, this research proposes that “how American” Obama is perceived will mediate the relationship between racial prejudice and evaluations of his performance for White, but not Black participants and only for Obama and not for Vice-President Biden. Data were collected from 295 Black or White students surveyed 1 year after Obama's election. Supportive of our hypotheses, racial prejudice predicted Whites’ negative evaluations of Obama's performance, and this relationship was mediated by how American Obama was perceived. Additionally, these relationships were not obtained among Black participants or when Blacks or Whites evaluated the Americanism and job performance of Vice-President Biden.     

Like a Virgin…Again?: Secondary Virginity as an Ongoing Gendered Social Construction

Secondary virginity—a sexually-initiated person’s deliberate decision to refrain from intimate encounters for a set period of time and to refer to that decision as a kind of virginity (rather than “mere” abstinence)—has largely eluded sociological scrutiny, despite its increasing popularity as a concept and practice among American youth. This study explores beliefs and experiences regarding secondary virginity, drawing on qualitative interviews with 61 socially diverse women and men, of whom four were avowed secondary virgins, five likened their experiences to a second virginity/virginity loss, and 16 had phenomenologically similar experiences which they did not frame in terms of virginity. Respondents who endorsed the concept of secondary virginity were disproportionately White conservative Christian women born after 1972. Secondary virginity reveals the social construction of gendered sexuality and the heterosexual imaginary as it reinforces privilege along gender, racial, religious, and sexual dimensions.